This article was originally about using GRUB2 to boot various Linuxes directly out of their ISO files. It was a way to test distros without having to burn their CDs. However, it only worked with Ubuntu and its variants. It didn't work at all with Puppy.

The new ISObooter project removes this limitation. It can boot most Linuxes and all recent Puppies.

Update: See Page 12 for a better way to keep your save file/folder on the flash drive.

Update: See Page 9 for a way to create ISObooter flash drives from Windows. Read the instructions on Page 5 for making an ISObooter flash drive from another Linux.

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ISObooter is a procedure for booting many Linuxes, including Puppy, directly from their ISO files. It is based on Scooby's work here.

1. Run Gparted and format your USB drive as FAT32. This is essential to ensure that the ISO files are contiguous.

2. Set the "Boot" flag on the FAT32 partition.

3. If you have a large drive, you may want to make two or three partitions to organize your ISOs. But do NOT make a fourth partition! It is used by the ISObooter system. Also, read here.

4. Download the attachment isobooter.tar.gz and extract it. It contains a single clickable script named isobooter.

7. Add some ISO files to your drive. You can copy them from other locations or download them directly from the web.

Hint: After putting an ISO on the drive, open a terminal window and type: sync. This helps to prevent fragmentation.

8. When done, click the isobooter icon again. Answer "n" to the first question.

9. The next question is

Code:

Choose a partition for Puppy savefiles [1,2,3]

For a basic one-partition setup, choose 1.

10. You have two choices for setting up each ISO.

Code:

Do you want to boot xxx.iso from its splash screen? [y/n]

a. For non-Puppies like Ubuntu, answer "y". This simulates booting from a physical burned disc.
b. For a Puppy, answering "n" will make it boot like a frugal install. This is the preferred choice.

Hint: If you answer "y" or "n", the ISO files are processed individually. If you use "Y" or "N", all subsequent files are automatically processed the same way.

11. Finally, ISObooter checks the collection of ISO files for fragmentation and reports if any of them are unbootable.

12. You're done! Check out the new menu.lst file. Then boot off the USB drive.

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If you are storing ISOs in several partitions, run ISObooter in each one.

There are two ways to make a second partition bootable.
a. Move the file grldr into it. Grub4Dos will boot the partition containing this file.
b. In your main partition, open its menu.lst in a text editor. Note the final entry.

Code:

title More ISOs (see the instructions)
configfile (hd0,x)/menu.lst
commandline

Change (hd0,x) to match the second partition. Note that the GRUB number is one less than the partition number. For example, (hd0,1) would point to partition #2.

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Having a spare FAT32 partition on your USB drive can be handy. If the ISO files in your main partition become dis-contiguous, just copy them to the spare partition. Make it bootable. Then re-format the first partition.

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ISObooter will boot many non-Puppy ISO's such as Ubuntu. But if you want persistent storage, there is some extra setup.

Friendly smile from Nooby. Check out the typo in --nofloppy should be --no-floppy
grub-install --force --no-floppy --root-directory=/mnt/sdb1 /dev/sdb

Edit again
Jay great success. I did as you told me and it worked and I booted the USB 2GB Kingston up. I had placed a LinuxMint variety there named Peppermint and I write from it now. Fan runs wild so not sure how good peppermint is on being on Acer D250 mall Atom N270 maybe demanding using only 1GB RAM.

Edit again later. Sadly it suddenly refused to boot the iso on the usb memory.
Maybe I changed something but after reinstalling it has booted several times so maybe some glitch??? But now to my important question

How do I get it to boot isos on NTFS HDD from the usb?
I want to boot from my HDD ntfs hdd. So how can I tell the grub2 to look for the iso on sda3 instead of just loop as it says now?
I use these codes but none of them show up except the first one. Very odd due to them look normal to me.

I boot up Peppermint linux as iso on the ext2 USB with the help of rcrsn51's pet based on pendrivelinux ways to do it.

And if it is booted up from the usb flash then it allow you to access the NTFS HDD but if you boot up from the USB but from the iso on the HDD then the HDD get owned by root and Ubuntu don't allow you to use filemanager to access what is owned by root. That is how I get it.

Maybe one can do gksu or some other variety but I know such too little.

Anyway I went about it like this. I used puppy and mounted the Lubuntu 10.10 iso and dragged the directories to root/mnt/home like casper and all the others. one of them are invisible to look out for the one with a .disks or some similar name. and then I asked on Peppermint forum how they do it and a friendly guy there Eric he described it and it worked right away.

The thing that made it possible was that I used (hd1,3) instead of (hd0,3)

The very bad thing is that it take away the partition that it boots from.

Unless you can tell us how to allow filemanager to access it. It is not even visible while if you boot from an iso on the USB then you can play music and see pictures and read texts on your hdd.

I mean is that not odd? why do they do such things. Okay I am a true noob in that sense that I ahve no idea how one get access but I would not want to be a new newbie wanting to show every body I knew and then have to admit that I fail to make use of the 250GB big HDD ever due to some Dev wanting to protect me from it.

Edit another success story. I am editing from WattOS on the NTFS HDD and using the same code as for Lubuntu. Thanks to Eric on Peppermint forum for teaching me how to._________________I use Google Search on Puppy Forum
not an ideal solution though

New success. Ubuntu 11.04.iso using same code as above booted just fine thanks to tip from Eric at Peppermint forum.

Hi Nooby. I just saw this thread. Looks like you've been busy.

Could you post your latest Grub config file for review.

Thanks in advance_________________Get ACTIVE Create Circles; Do those good things which benefit people's needs!
We are all related ... Its time to show that we know this!
3 Different Puppy Search Enginesor use DogPile

if you are on partition 1 then change 3 to 1 instead. I tried first with 0,3 but it needed 1,3 at my computer.

I have now tested Lubuntu and WattOS and Ubuntu NN 11.04 the newest and this Peppermint-Ice very new too and all of them booted from the NTFS HDD so great progress for me.

thanks to all who have supported me to be able to do this this easily.

tip the hdd is at isodevice when one use the filemanager. in ubuntu one need to do the sudo nautilus but in peppermint maybe one don't Test it
I have to go back to bed now. Has only slept 90 minutes tonight._________________I use Google Search on Puppy Forum
not an ideal solution though

oops I I am so sleepy that I made a double post. answer above this one
Sorry I really have to turn in now my eyes are hurting.

I used this iso and it works great having it on the internal hdd Peppermint-Ice-10012010.iso
but one need to have the grub2 on the USB unles you actually install grub2 to your hdd but that could break other dual boots. So be careful_________________I use Google Search on Puppy Forum
not an ideal solution though

does this method of booting from a usb flash stick work on a pc that does not support booting from a usb device?

i really am interested in figuring out how to boot from my usb key on a few old boxes that dont have cd drive or floppy drive.

thanks in advance

rcrsn51 is right on but it all depends on how much trouble you want to go doing work arounds.

There are two kinds of failing to boot from the usb.

what Rcrsn51 refers to is the common knowledge that older hardware did not have that built in.

then there is some in between hardware like my old HP/Compaq that does not boot but that allow mounting of a usb flash.

Have you tested different brands?

Have you tested a fake frugal install of the distro you have on the usb?

Take the two most important files from your usb vmlinuz and initrd.gz make a copy of them and put them in a subdir on the hdd of the computer you want to use. I use drop and drag copy using two ROX file prgrams

So only vmlinuz and initrd.gz on the hdd and no pupsave file either. but it should preferably be in its own subdir on the mnt/sda1 if that is the partition.

Now what happens is that Puppy by design mount every drive there is connected and mounting is not same as booting from BIOS.

So even if the BIOS don't include booting from USB the Puppy can mount and use a puppy.sfs file and that way allow for booting the usb which I did use on that old thing from 2003 or so that did refuse to boot usb.

So it is worth a try._________________I use Google Search on Puppy Forum
not an ideal solution though

im very new to linux and puppy so havent done a whole lot but mess around im not a command line person as of yet but im learnin thanks nooby i will try that out 1 of my issues also that i didnt mention was no hard drive on 1 either so its just a mobo & RAM for the most part. im just experimenting & learnin for future possible fixes as i do some computer repair & maintainance i get lots of extra parts of old hardware. so workin on makin a puppy testin station type thing.

aitch thanks for the advice no floppy drive though and no hard drive so plop wont do much for me there. if i had those i would be able to use wakepup or something in puppy

posting from it now. had to put a 250 mb linux swap of the flash drive to get it to go sensibly with my native 512mb ram. long time to boot with long black screen. say seems like 5 minutes.
question your "cdrom" in the mint menuentry.
linuxmint11.iso goes into /linuxmint11.iso on the flashdrive.
need to set it as default in grub2 menu and let it timeout . hitting return at the grub2 menu failed to boot it.
so please i am going to give fedora live a shot next. then watch dog at

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